Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO) Shares Sold by Retirement Systems of Alabama

Retirement Systems of Alabama lowered its position in shares of Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:LECO - Free Report) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 127,872 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 2,087 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned approximately 0.23% of Lincoln Electric worth $23,972,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Lincoln Electric by 81.9% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,097,965 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $210,831,000 after purchasing an additional 494,464 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its stake in Lincoln Electric by 12.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,462,232 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $474,527,000 after buying an additional 280,466 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Lincoln Electric by 18,413.8% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 258,267 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $49,592,000 after buying an additional 256,872 shares during the period. Absher Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric during the 3rd quarter valued at about $24,604,000. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. purchased a new position in shares of Lincoln Electric during the 3rd quarter worth about $23,233,000. 79.61% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Lincoln Electric from $216.00 to $211.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of Lincoln Electric from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, KeyCorp increased their target price on Lincoln Electric from $210.00 to $230.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $229.50.

Lincoln Electric Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of Lincoln Electric stock traded down $1.99 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $191.25. The company's stock had a trading volume of 198,246 shares, compared to its average volume of 240,737. The business has a fifty day moving average of $195.66 and a 200 day moving average of $195.93. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $169.51 and a 1-year high of $261.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86. The company has a market capitalization of $10.79 billion, a PE ratio of 22.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.18.

Lincoln Electric Company Profile

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells welding, cutting, and brazing products worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Americas Welding, International Welding, and The Harris Products Group. It offers brazing and soldering filler metals, arc welding equipment, plasma and oxyfuel cutting systems, wire feeding systems, fume control equipment, welding accessories, and specialty gas regulators, and education solutions, as well as a portfolio of automated solutions for joining, cutting, material handling, module assembly, and end of line testing, as well as involved in brazing and soldering alloys, and in the retail business in the United States.